DESCRIPTION

Chapter Nine begins with Ānanda and Rāhula hoping to also receive predictions of future enlightenment. The Buddha first gives a prediction to Ānanda followed by a prediction for Rāhula, which is connected to the Buddhahood of Ānanda. The chapter concludes with the Buddha giving predictions of enlightenment to two thousand people who were still in training (śaikṣa) and those beyond training (aśaikṣaI, i.e. arhats), who will all have the same name as Buddhas.